The Four Seasons
Decca, 2021
9/10
The debut album from the 13 year old Christian Li, the Australian-Chinese prodigy plays his violin like a seasoned veteran here, and he’s in the company of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra as well as some special guests.
“Spring” starts the listen with bright, soaring strings, where Li’s precise violin guides the glorious moments while also taking time for solos, and “Summer” continues this approach with quivering string manipulation in a very busy and precise display of fascinating musicianship.
The remainder of the seasons, “Autumn” and “Winter”, don’t disappoint either, where the former displays cascading waves of beauty and warmth, while the latter finds itself in calmer areas of introspection, but certainly doesn’t shy away from fuller bouts of swift string work, either.
Rounding out the listen is the intimate and soulful “Fisherman’s Harvest Song”, which benefits much from agile and stirring piano thanks to Timothy Young, and “La Ronde des lutins” exits the listen with lightning quick violin and jumpy keys, as the Antonio Bazzini composition finishes on a very high note.
This marks the first recording of The Four Seasons in 17 years on the Decca label, and the extraordinary talent of this young man makes for a stunning effort that you can’t help but be in awe of.
Travels well with: Voces8- Infinity; Seong-Jin Cho- Chopin: Piano Concerto No. 2 Scherzi